Mabo fair : aubergine and tofu

There exist mabo tofu and mabo aubergine, two sister Chinese dishes widely adopted in Japan. Today they are on the the same meal.

My lunch tray. Yes, that was delicious and filling.

The base is the same : onion, garlic, ginger, Sichuan pepper and azuki beans. After simmering, I add miso, paprika and I pass the mixer. I’ve added slices of green hot chili.

Aubergines steamed, then stir-fried with garlic. I’ve added the sauce and more paprika, water and reheated. On the finished, a tbs of fragrant sesame oil and a few roasted sesame seeds.

To the rest of the sauce, I’ve added green sweet chilis, a little more Sichuan pepper, then cubed silky tofu.

Served with rice of course. It’s Thai jasmine rice with a little sticky black rice.

Veggie side : okra sprouts, topped with zucchini (grated, mixed with salt and turmeric, let 1 hour).

Mountain of veggies green curry

Yeah, all those veggies inside a curry trying to recreate the mountain green curry of the mountain people in the North of Thailand and South of China. It’s very sour, very bitter, very green… and the combination is refreshing. Well, that’s my arranged version with what I had in stock, as they surely never get favas and okras, but they have many local produce I can’t get.
I think the sansho (lemony, bitter), the goya (bitter), the ginger (hot) bring the good balance.

Green sansho peppercorns (frozen), onions, ginger, bay leaves.

Goya bitter cucumber, broad beans, okras, carrots.

I used green curry paste, brown sugar, citrus juice for the broth.

Ready.

Served with jasmine rice.

A side-dish totally fusion : white sashimi konnyaku, yellow bell pepper and balsamic reduction sauce.

Greens for the heat

We are having a dry or a late rainy season. It’s getting hot. We have to get used to it. Adapting the menu is very important.

This natto is from a village called Tamba, famous for its soy bean. It’s a little more hand-made than the ordinary one.

I’ve added negi leeks, nira garlic chives and green sansho peppercorns that are now in season, with dashi broth and a little soy sauce, mixed and let a few hours.

Very large long beans. I’ve just cut them in 2 and blanched.

Blanched ninniku no me (garlic stalks) and boiled tokk (Korean mochi rice cakes)

The beans, stalks and tokk reheated in tomato sauce with lots of cut fresh oregano.

To add a little sourness : tarragon pickles (made here).

Sour fragrances for a daizu bean soup

This soup looks very ordinary, but under the flat appearance it’s a bunch of raw spices and nutty touches. It’s nutritive and surely detoxing as the ingredients are all very healthy.

Soybeans, called daizu in Japanese. They are dry. They are the ingredient to make tofu, natto and other soy products. This time I soaked them longly and boiled to eat them as a vegetable. They are a source plant based proteins.

Cooked. The skin go away on this photo because I froze them and thawed a bit quickly.

Sobacha (buckwheat tea) is made of broken and roast buckwheat kernels. It’s a delicious caffeine-free drink.

I keep the grounds after infusion. As you can see they take lots of volume and become soft. Of course, and I eat them. It’s a pleasant nutty grain, a bit too strong on its own. So let mix that in.

Diced ginger. It’s excellent for digestion.

Frozen sancho peppercorns(Sichuan pepper). It has a sour and fragrant power not unlike ginger. Both go well together. I’ve mixed all the ingredient listed, added water and reheated, then I’ve diluted a tbs of miso and blended in a 3 tbs of ground freshly roast sesame.

Warmth from the plate, mmmm…

A macédoine chinoise

A satisfying original stir-fry animated by Asian flavors.

That’s not cuisine from Macedonia at all. Macédoine just means a mix of cubes veggies and peas. When I was a kid, they’d tell me that was because in history Macedonia, the old country, had been made of patches of very small regions and people. Yeah ? What country was not ? The horror is that was usually about canned veggies that tasted like the can. So they invented stories to make you eat that…

Nothing like that here. I’ve fresh produce and some well cooked.

My selection. Some garlic and ginger are not on the photo.

The black things are hijiki seaweeds and Chinese ear wood mushrooms. I used them dry and they have soaked the excess of sauce.

Another black ingredient is the tablespoon of Chinese miso I have added. And I’ve sprinkled ground Sichuan pepper.

A huge plate to devour with black Puer tea. I really thought I was preparing some for 2 or 3 meals but I have eaten it all as it’s really easy to munch. You take a spoon, one more and again and oh no more ! No problem, that’s totally healthy.